Pregnancy and inflammatory bowel disease: current management

Inflammatory bowel disease primarily affects adolescents and young adults, presenting management concerns for obstetricians caring for these women during pregnancy. Interdisciplinary care by the obstetrician and gastroenterologist and selection of individual courses of management produce pregnancy outcomes that approach those of an unaffected population. Routine medical management using glucocorticoids, metronidazole, and asacol derivatives as well as more aggressive therapy using immunomodulators azathioprine and 6-mercaptopurine are shown to be of low risk to the fetus. Effective medical management greatly reduces need for surgical intervention during pregnancy. An understanding of current management perspectives assures positive pregnancy outcomes for mother and infant.